Today, there is a significant increase in the desire of many to have large multimedia visual displays in more and more locations, whether for presentations, tradeshows, marketing and advertising, or conferences (temporary display location(s)). Such large multimedia visual displays significantly increase viewer, customer and visitor interaction, retention and recognition.
However a significant challenge exists when trying to erect a support structure and large display for displaying information, pictures or movies inside large spaces, such as ballrooms, conference rooms, convention show floors and the like. For example, a large screen or display and its support structure will be erected flanked by large piping to hold curtains in place to create an artificial wall or defined space. In one example, a projector is placed in front of or behind a large screen to project an image on the screen. In order to see the image projected on the screen the lights in the room are turned down making it difficult for visitors to navigate low light areas. Moreover, to erect a large screen takes two to three people at least three to five hours or longer to set up the screen, taping of data cables and power cables to the carpet, and positioning of the projector to minimize the heat emanating from the projectors, wherein such heat may be disrupting to the audience. Furthermore, projectors in such systems require a throw distance, the space behind the screen needed to position the projector a distance apart from the screen to enable the projector to fill the screen with an image; thereby, reducing the size and inefficient use of ballrooms, conference rooms, convention show floors and the like. Still further, hardware and labor required to construct the support structure for such screen and projector systems adds to the expense of creating large displays in temporary locations and has limited their widespread use.
Another example of a large display system is one configured as a tiled LCD wall by affixing a plurality of LCDs side-by-side mounted to a support structure or superstructure to create a large display. Multiple cables for both data and power are required to operate the tiled LCD wall. These cables are pulled back to a large integration box which is fed by the media player to create one large display across multiple LCDs tiled together. Likewise, a tiled LCD wall requires extensive hardware to create the structure and three or more well-trained crew at least three to five hours or longer to assemble a three module high by three module wide LCD wall. Furthermore, taping of data cables and power cables to the carpet and tying the same with cable ties to the structure from LCD to the integration box, as well as labor and hardware expense of the support structure adds significantly to the expense of creating large displays using a tiled LCD wall in temporary locations and has limited their widespread use.
CRT or LCD displays have drawbacks, such as they utilize heavy, hard-to-move high resolution CRT or LCD displays with glass fronts or covers. Such displays can cause serious injury when bumped or tipped over resulting in an explosion or shards of glass in the viewing area. Because of this risk the support structure includes large, heavy frames to stabilize such displays causing the display portion to be several feet off of the floor. Moreover, these large scale displays tend to be heavy, expensive to operate, not easily transported and set up, and are power hungry.
Still another example of a large display system is a portable display enclosed in a transport box that is larger than the display. Typically such display systems include a mechanical lift mechanism to lift the display up higher than the storage box. While these boxed display systems works for some places it is difficult if not impossible to have a box big enough to hold a large display of the size desired.
Therefore, it is readily apparent that there is a recognizable unmet need for a retractable display system and method of use that provides a large display disassembled as display subassemblies in a transport box that automatically, by push of a button, erects and assembles through electrical, mechanical or other means the display subassemblies into a large seamless display at least two times higher than any one individual display subassembly.